How the budget is calculated
Package amount + separately priced items + explicit provisional allowances = entered subtotal. An item marked included contributes zero additional cost because it is already in the positive package amount. An item outside your project contributes nothing, but an unknown or excluded item without a price keeps the budget incomplete.
Select one consistent tax basis across the package, separate prices and allowances. VAT-exclusive amounts are multiplied by 1.05. VAT-inclusive amounts are unchanged; their VAT component is subtotal ÷ 21. Confirmed no-VAT amounts are unchanged. The UAE Ministry of Finance documents the standard 5% rate; the tool does not determine a supplier's tax status.
Decimal inputs from AED 0 to 1,000,000 per field are accepted; these are technical safeguards, not market bounds. Invalid values are rejected instead of silently capped. Intermediate arithmetic keeps precision and money is rounded to two decimals at output. The second-quote difference is its total minus the first, not a quality ranking.
Worked example, not a market forecast
An illustrative AED 18,000 package includes the cabinets, countertop, labour, base, delivery and fees. A separate AED 6,000 appliance price plus an AED 3,000 provisional services allowance gives AED 27,000 before tax. If every amount excludes 5% VAT, the planning budget is AED 28,350. If the services cost is unknown instead of an explicit allowance, the tool withholds the full total.
An allowance is your temporary budget assumption, not an agreed contractor price. Replace it after the survey and compare the same material grades, models and quantities. A price-inclusive package should not have its cabinetry added again as a separate charge.
Why there is no automatic AED-per-metre rate
A short kitchen with premium appliances and a new drain route can cost more than a longer dry preparation counter. Cabinet depth, corners, stone cut-outs, services, safe appliance enclosures and access also change the scope. The calculator therefore uses your written prices rather than inventing a linear-metre forecast.
Public UAE examples reviewed on 16 September 2026 illustrate the distinction: IKEA lists an 86 × 61 cm cabinet module at AED 900 including VAT, while KLG advertises basic custom installations from AED 10,000 and Make My Garden lists full kitchens at AED 20,000–50,000+. The installed advertisements do not establish a universal specification or explicit tax basis. These are not interchangeable quotes or Bestimate transaction averages.
What the total does not establish
No result confirms safe grill clearances, gas compatibility, ventilation, electrical capacity, drainage, roof load or permission to build. Obtain model-specific professional design and management guidance. Keep refundable deposits outside the project-cost total and track the cash needed separately. Fuel, electricity, cleaning, future repairs, financing and later variations are not included unless a relevant allowance is explicitly entered; ongoing ownership costs are not modelled.
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